Rainbow Dash takes Scootaloo to a clear field not obstructed by trees or buildings.
“Scootaloo, we’re basically sisters, and as a little apology for the whole Washouts incident, I’m going to show you the stars.”
Scootaloo leaps off Rainbow Dash and says,”Just the stars? Nothing more? That’s not cool!”
“Just tell me, have you ever stopped to look at the stars kid?”
“No, but...”
“Let me show you what you’ve been missing.”
They lay down on the grass and Rainbow Dash says,”After all, there’s no better pony than me to show you the stars. I am Rainbow Dash after all.”
Scootaloo is still incredibly bored, so Dash points a hoof up to the stars. She first points is at the big dipper,”The Ursa Major, often called The Big Dipper, is a constellation that legends say was put into the sky by Celestia. After Rockhoof’s victory over an Ursa Major, and him proceeding to stretch the tale a bit, Celestia put that constellation up there.”
Next, she points to the little dipper,”A similar thing was done to the Ursa Minor, The Little Dipper, was put up there as a guide for sailors. It bears the shape of an Ursa Minor to warn sailors of what could happen, but has the brightest star that always leads north for a guide.”
“Why did Celestia want to warn sailors?” Scootaloo asks.
“Nopony knows, I think that it was a little bit of her prankster showing.”
Dash rolls closer to Scootaloo, and points her hoof up to a constallation that vaguely looks like a pony.
“That’s Lunas, it was a tribute constellation put in the sky by Celestia to say she still cared about Luna after her banishment. Celestia was a little bitter-sweet about this, so the constellation also appears to be spinning backwards.”
“That’s pretty cool!” Says Scootaloo.
“Hey, when you delve into the myths of these constellations, they are. Why do you think I bothered learning about them?”
Dash fidgets a little, and points a hoof towards a long, skinny constellation.
“What’s that one?” Scootaloo asks enthusiastically.
“Draconequus, this one was simply to memorialize the defeat of Discord. It’s the longest constellation because Celestia decided to make it so that it was a little more chaotic.”
Scootaloo nods a little bit more,”What about some other constellations?”
“We’ve got pegasus, it’s next to constellations of an earth pony and unicorn to show the fact that they’re living together in perfect harmony. Not to be discriminative or anything, but pegasai are the most awesome.”
Scootaloo gasps in shock.
“Never mind, forget I said that. We’ve got Libra near those ones to show a perfect balance.”
Dash decides to sit up, and beckons Scootaloo to join her. She points a hoof at Virgo,”That’s Virgo, the virgin.”
“What does that mean?” Scootaloo asks.
“Ask your aunts in a few years, not me. That constellation is a zodiac symbol for August, it’s said that it’s in the shape of an alicorn because they’re the purest race, kind of like gods if you will.
“Next to that is Leo, the Lion,” she says, moving her hoof,”said to be describing the fiercest of warriors who fought in the war with Nightmare Moon. The are noted to have faught like lions.”
Scootaloo is entranced by the legends, but not so much by the constellations,”Any other ones I should know?” Scootaloo asks.
“Just the zodiac symbols, Aquarius, the water bearer, nopony knows quite what that’s doing there. It’s probably just Celestia’s prankster acting up.
“Next, we’ve got Pieces the fish, it’s a fairly recent one, representing Hippogriffs and Seaponies.”
“How’d you find that one out if it’s so recent?” Asks Scootaloo.
“I got it,” Dash chuckles,”straight from the horse’s mouth if you will.”
“Come on Rainbow Dash! Is the seriously the best you can do?” Scootaloo asks, laughing.
“It might be,” says Dash,”Next we’ve got Aries, the ram. It’s purported that it’s put up there by Celestia due to yaks, but I personally think it’s another symbolic thing, not unlike Leo.”
“I have one more question, why Celestia and not Luna? Like, doesn’t Luna rule the night?”
“She does, but remember that Celestia banished Luna and spent the last thousand years ruling both the day and night. A lot of constellations were put up there due to her lack of Luna.”
Dash shifts around a bit more,”Scootaloo, are you still awake?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” says Scootaloo, stifiling a yawn.
“You know, you can tell me if you are. Remember the last time you hid something from me.”
Scootaloo laughs nervously,”Yeah, but I’m just really interested in knowing the lore behind all these constellations Cherliee teaches us about in class.”
Dash laughs,”Alright squirt, if you say so. Next up we have Taurus the bull. Taurus is interesting, as it is widely agreed that bulls existed in Equestria at some point, but they all left. Historians know not what significance bulls held over Equestria to the point of a constellation.”
“Next up we’ve got the twins, Gemini. Believe it or not, legends say that these twins were either massive entertainers in the palace, or peculiar soldiers. I personally lean more towards the entertainers, I could see Celestia liking two ponies who are exactly the same.
“Next, is Cancer,” Dash says.
Scootaloo appears to grow incredibly frightened,”Cancer?”
“Not that Cancer!” Says Dash with a laugh, before shifting her hooves around a bit more.”Cancer the crab! Said to be a crab Celestia put in the sky to fool ponies, we’ve gotten used to it, and it has become a zodiac sign.”
“Any more?” Scootaloo asks, yawning.
“Scorpio the scorpion, it is a giant scorpion. The legends say that Discord snapped the thing into existence, and it took a team of a dozen ponies to take it down. Again, put into the sky in memoriam.”
“How many more?” Asks Scootaloo, starting to nod off.
“Two, Sagittarius, the archer, said to be a great archer in the war against Nightmare Moon.”
“Why are so many of these about the war with Nightmare Moon?” Scootaloo asks.
“Celestia felt great regret for that, so she tries to make ponies remember what she went through, hence Lunas. It’s also the only major war Equestria has had in the first place. Finally, we’ve got Capricorn, which is the unicorn constellation next to the pegasus. Are you ready to go home Scootaloo?” Dash asks.
“Yeah,” says Scootaloo with a yawn. Pointing towards a pony with a sword and shield, she says,”What constellation’s that?”
“That’s Orion, Scootaloo, it’s my personal favorite. Nopony knows why he’s up there, but most can agree on one thing, he’s the protector of the night, a reminder of Luna. Legends say Luna actually put that one up, as a way to remind ponies of her presence. Scootaloo that’s cool, isn’t it? Scootaloo?”
Dash recieved no response from the orange pegasus, she was fast asleep. Dash laughs,”Let’s get you back to your aunts Scootaloo, and may Luna and Orion be with you.”
Author's Note
So, I wrote this right after the most recent chapter of StallionForce. It’s just a little plotless Scootalove fic. I never tried to write Scootalove because I know I’d suck, but this came out half-decent! I hope this launches some headcanons, I’d never thought about this stuff, but it just kind of flowed onto the page.
Also, if anypony asks, this takes place directly after season 8 ends.
